Paper Heart
by NeonZangetsu
Summary: A simple inquiry after Pain's defeat sets a whirlwind of events into motion for Uzumaki Naruto. Now, gifted with all the powers of a god, what on earth will he do with them? Will he fight for good? Evil? Something else? NarutoxKonan Fluff! AU, EPIC!


**_. What might have occured if someone had actually had an ounce of sense and offered to escort Nagato's body back to Ame WITH Konan? Well, that ship has long since sailed, thanks to this little drabble that drove me off the walls all Christmas until I finally decided to rewrite it..._**

**_Paper Heart_**

A sliver of blood trickled into the water.

The heavens wept as the raindrops hit the water and mingled with blood. Flakes of rust and rotten dust joined them, forming a dirty brown pool of red and brown at their feet. A young woman choked against the hand upon her throat, and the metal rod wedged in the pit of her stomach as it was forced further into her flesh. Her half-masked adversary offered no apology nor sign of remorse for her plight, and the steel pipe wrenched painfully inside her chest.

"When this genjutsu ends, so will your life."

Konan choked at this reply, eyes wide and disbelieving as she gawped down at the jagged pole that jutted violently out of her stomach. She could feel the blood in her lungs, and the sweat beading against her brow as she struggled to breathe and fight the cold hand of death that crept toward her soul. She struggled to take in that last desperate grasp of air as her heart began to beat with a strange rhythm that no one could ever foretell.

_'To think...that this would be my fate..._

She knew she must not look into that eye, but the temptation to stare down her killer was far too great.

"But before that...**give me the Rinnegan."**

Konan could feel her body go numb and the air in her lungs grow thin as the black tomoe of the Sharingan widened and began to spin before her pysche. She gripped the offensive object that protruded hand, and felt her grip slacken as a series of black rods lanced out of the darkness and pinned her to the ground. Even knowing that this was an illsuion,cit did very little ease her pain, and she clenched her teeth against the sudden realization that this could very well be her end.

She was not mistaken.

_'Even so... I will...support him...until the end..._

Konan was losing the gift of sight. She felt that strange numbness wash over her again, forcing her to swoon against it. Everything was beginning to blur as those eyes burned into her brain and took what information they needed. She refused to speak it, for if she did, then she knew all was lost. She felt moisture upon her face and somehow knew that it was blood. Somewhere outside this infernal hell that had become her mind, Konan could hear Madara giving another one of his long-winded speeches.

"Now, answer me."

A painful flash of memory came back to her amongst these words...

_(Brief Flashback)_

_"NANI?" He lurched back in surprise. "Why me?"_

_"You needn't answer right away." She fought the urge to smile at his gobsmacked expression. "Nevertheless, I would appreciate your assitance in this manner." Blond and brash though he was, the student of Jiraiya appeared to be at a loss for words for the first time since their heated battle of Konoha. Oddly enough, Konan found the expression to be rather endearing, given the current situation and loss of her most cherished comrade only moments before._

_Silently dreading his answer, she asked of him again:_

_"Would you be willing to accompany me to Amegakure?"_

_He flinched, no less stunned by the question now, than when she had inquired it of him the first time. And who could blame the boy for his hesitation? Knowing that Nagato also held the surname of Uzumaki had come as quite the shock to Konan as well, even moreso at the possibility that this genin had just witnessed the death of a fellow clan member. Torn between his promis and his own duty, he was conflicted and such feelings were only natural, given the circumstances._

_"But..." His smile wavered a bit as he found the courage to speak. "Um...why're you asking ME to do this?"_

_"There is something I would like you to read." She explained._

_"Read?" He squinted and the expression made him look fox-faced for a moment. "I'm not too good with that kinda stuff."_

_"It is a tablet, actually." Konan redily supplied. "Nagato was able to read a good deal of it, and I believe you might be able to do the same." He made a face at that, as though weighing her offer of training against that duty and a responsiblity to his village. Eventually, the latter seeemd to win out, though not without a great deal of hesitation. She could see the frustration and indecision runnign rampant behind those red and blue eyes as they flickered from serenity to aggression._

_"Why me?" He blinked in rapid sucession as indecision wormed its way into his expression. Unsure of what else to say, he shied away from her patient and almost expectant stare, those glassy orbs of azure now weak and indecisive. "I don't want to learn all this cool stuff just by reading." __Suddenly sullen at such a thought, he risked a brief glance toward Nagato's battered and lifeless body. Those matchless blue eyes lingered upon the man's now white hair. Konan allowed the boy that brief moment of contemplation, to consider her offer._

_"Does it...would I have to leave with you right now?"_

_"Pardon?"_

_He scrached at his head and refused to meet her gaze._

_"Well...there's, I kinda need to take care of some stuff first." _

_"I...see."_

_"Gah!" Mistaking her brief glance aside as something that it wasn't, he flailed either arm about wildly when she Konan briefly looked away. "Hold on a sec! It's not like like that at all! I really DO want to go with you and know where my clan came from! Really! I do!" __Konan blinked as the boy waved the bouqet about and gesticulated furiously in varying signs of affirmation. "It's just I...well, um, aargh! I'm just no good at explaining this kinda stuff, damnit!" _

_"I-_

_"No, its not like that at all!" He insisted. "I'm just genuinely concerned!"_

_This youth, the boy to whom Nagato had entrusted the future, and the fate of peace itself, baffled her. Nay, not only had his answer caught her offguard, it had caught her outright flat-footed. In all honestly, she hadn't expected such a forthcoming reply from him, or even an agreement to spend a week in Amegakure. Now, as he hefted the proffered bouqet of paper flowers and waved them about as though they were a weapon, she felt the beginnings of a small smile pulling at her lips._

_'He's just like you ...Nagato.'_

_"Uzumaki Naruto."_

_"Eh?" He stiffened instinctively as a pair of soft lips pressed against his cheek._

_"I am...glad to have met you."_

_(End Flashback)_

Strengthened by the knowledge that she _could _resist his interrogation, Konan marshaled her defenses and threw them at the invaders. Steeling herself against the torturous technique, she flung an image of that handsome smile into her mind and by default into the Tsukiyomi's glare, hoping to ward away the Sharingan. She could just picture Madara's face as her ears pricked and she received a small bleat of surprise, borne of anger and annoyance.

"So you had some fight left in you, after all."

_'I will not let this happen!'_

Seizing upon this small flicker of hope, Konan hurled thousands upon thousands of mental images, thoughts, and feelings back at Madara. Every image and memory she had of _him_, of Nagato, Yahiko, and even Jiraiya-sensei, everyone and everything that she held near and dear. That sound of surprise morphed into an angry snarl as Madara fought to break through the barrier she had erected, and did not succeed. Secure and wrapped tightly within the events of the past week, Konan held firm against the assault and allowed the waves to break against the rock to which she secured her safety...

Until Madara violently shoved Konan _off _the pipe and plunged her headfirst into the water.

Impalement had been agonizing, and if the removal of the offensive weapon was so much the greater than that, this sudden inability to breath was absolutely excructiating. Konan somehow fought off the initial urge to scream and inhale as the foul water rushed around her face and before her eyes and stung at her nose. She knew not how long she was held beneath the waves, nor the amount of time that passed, but eventually, she was pulled from her premautre grave.

Without a word, she was violently dragged into the air.

"Tell me where you're hiding the Rinnegan."

Despite her best efforts to get back up, Konan still lay there, almost imobile as the blood began to pool and pour from the clean hole in her flesh. She did not blink, she did not breathe, she didn't even protest as strong fingers clamped down upon her throat. She glared into that blazing Sharingan, and refused to tell him what she knew, even as he ravaged her mind for the location of Nagato's body.

"I will...tell you _nothing!"_

Konan's vision narrowed painfully as another surge of agony coursed through her spine.

_"You will tell me everything."_ Madara reprimanded with that gentle-yet-stern mannerism that told her he simply would not be denied any longer. "And once you _have _told me where the Rinnegan is hidden, because you've been such a disobedient little girl, you will die a long and painful death." Ironically it was this final and blatant mockery of Nagato, of his legacy and all that he had ever stood for and against, that would prove to be Uchiha Madara's final mistake.

"What the fuck do _you _know about pain, YOU PIECE OF SHIT!"

Deadly and dripping with saddistic cynicism, the loud and furious cry of a young man tore through the rain and ripped into their ears. With it came an intense surge of cold and black intent, one that could be felt even amongst these thick and incessant raindrops which constantly plagued the land of Amegakure. Konan had only an instant to glance toward Madara and jerk her gaze to the furious clouds that roiled above their battle.

_'That chakra is..._

What Konan saw and bore witness to on that stormy afternoon, was an amazing and incredibly foolish feat, even for those of the shinobi world. Dropping down from the nearby outcropping miles over their heads, a humanoid blur garbed in red and orange swiftly descended from the cliff face. As impossible as it might have seemed at the time, someone'd actually had the stones to not only _leap _from the edge of the precipece, but to plummet feet first toward to the earth at an incredible velocity that would surely herald their death.

"Meddling pest...**!"**

Perturbed by this newcomer, Madara glared intently upward. His eye narrowing and focusing tightly upon the cloaked assailant that dropped down on them. Silent and incredibly deadly, black flames that were Amaterasu burst forth from his Mangekyo Sharingan and wrapped around the boy. Instead of crying out in surprise however, the blond simply grinned and produced a large _poof _of smoke as the _Kage Bunshin_ evaporated against the intense heat.

By the time Madara witnessed the explosion, the _true _shinobi had drawn well within range and he simply hadn't the time nor the chakra to get off that crucial second shot. And so it was that Madara's silver tongue, that with which he had long since mastered the subtle art of deception and manipulation, proved to be his very undoing. For as powerful as he might have been or possibly still could be, Uchiha Madara was simply unprepared for the odd and incredibly unorthodox attack that followed suit.

Baffled by such a burst of speed, Konan squinted against the gloom and blinked in wild disbelief as the dark silhouette landed between she and her captor, his red cape and cloak billowing out against a wild gust of wind as he caught her by the wrist and simultaneously struck out at the latter before his feet could touch the water. For a moment, just a moment, Konan felt a brief twinge of pity for the recipient of that blow.

-enough." He declared, finishing his lengthy combination with a vicious kick that sent his enemy hurtling away into the rain.

Whomever this newcomer was, Madara apparently must have been overconfident or simply unprepared for the knee that rose into his stomach. Even if it was neither the former nor the latter, he still doubled over and clutched at his gut as his attacker yanked Konan free from his grip, and swiftly deposited her a ways behind him. In the brief flash of lightning, she spied the Konoha _Hitai-ate _around his forehead, and those unforgettable whisker markings amidst the rain.

Rain… how absurdly ironic that he should appear during the midst of a storm.

_'Uzumaki...Naruto.'_

Amegakure after all, was where the rain never stopped.

_'How… How did this happen?' _Konan blinked against the droplets, and tried to understand why her tears had suddenly joined the rain of Amegakure. She had never been one to cry, Yakihiko's death had all but taken the tears from her, and she had shed her last one for Nagato days before. Baffled by this phenomena, Kona placed a trembling hand to her face, and was startled to realize while her eyes were yet moist, the rain had long since stopped.

She was crying and she did not know anything at all.

"I won't let him."

Konan sobbed softly as each jagged flash of searing agony stabbed at her heart, and was immediately accompanied by a gentle sensation of warmth. Within a few breaths, the pain had left her all to gether, and she was basked in solace and words of comfort. Torn apart by an intense light, the coulds parted and the storm abruptly abated. Kindness burgeoned the newcomer's voice as he offered a nod of assurance, his face and its owner hidden amongst the glare of the shining chakra, even as the sun remained hidden behind the clouds and the endless blue.

A sphere of burning gold tore its way out of the clouds and into the endless blue.

"I won't let him ruin the dream you and Nagato made."

For a moment, just a moment and an eternity to her, she saw the stern yet gentle face of Nagato gazing down upon her deathbed. But Nagato was not blond , nor did he posses those strange marks that resembled thin whisker lines upon either cheek. Had she been lucid, Konan might have recognized him at once for who he truly was. Dazed as she was, she could only stare as light and shadow continued to defy her attempts to see through him and identify him.

"I will not."

Within an instant, Konan realized something.

This was not Nagato, and...

_She was moving._

Her body, limp and cold amongst the rain, was being lifted into the air by a pair of strong arms. They drew Konan close and cradled her in a loose embrace, pulling her against their owner and a damp and warm body. Konana blinked mutely as the green glow of healing chakra consumed her wound, her hands, and her entire body as she was swiftly healed and light anew within the intensely bright flare of crimson and gold chakra.

"I will not allow it." His voice choked on the words and drew her closer still. "I won't...let you die!" Fatigued though it was, Konan's mind struggled to comprehend the phenomenon before and around her as she was bathed by within the heavenly radiance. Strangely, her body did not offer any protest to the healing chakra swept through her beleagured frame. Somehow, she found herself smiling as the luminance swept around her body and made her whole.

It was something she hasn't felt in such a long time and so desperately wanted to feel again.

"You really should do something about your hair."

Inadvertantly, she found her hands straying to the loosened locks of her hair and the abscence of her crumpled flower-piece in those pale blue locks, and the events of that passionate evening. She blushed as she saw that infamous half smile pull his lips into a crooked grin, and as that grin pressed gently against her forehead. She had seen this smile many a time before, and she would gladly kill to see it time and time again.

Managing to turn her head from the gaze she had at the crying sky, Konan looked to her right, hoping to find something or someone there. Only now did she feel that old helplessness and it just had to be when she was held in the arms of a stranger and yet one she knew as intimately as herself. She tried to send out a simple thank you, but the gripping and wordless emotions roiling inside her chest kept her from doing so.

She was dimly aware of motion, of noise, of sound, and of chakra. Craning her gaze away fro the weeping clouds, she struggled to turn toward the sounds and Madara's last known position. When she glanced at her side and found a shock of blond hair filling her view, Konana nearly began to weep once again. She hadn't the strength to fist her hand against them and still, she could not understand the reason for these tears of joy and sorrow.

How did they come to be?

Konan could feel herself panting for air like a fish out of water and somewhere up ahead, there was a prick of pain across her neck. She shut her eyes against the sudden rush of wind that did sail over her skin, and the dull vibration that grated against her clenched teeth. Madara's hold upon her throat, loosened, and that burning image of the Sharingan faded from her vision. Perceiving this sudden silence as her final moment of existence, Konan allowed her gaze to drift blearily skyward.

"Hmm?"

She slipped to the floor. It was surpsingly soft, she realized, as the puddle around her gently reached out to mold around her body and form a soft cushion. Rising a and guide her back to the ground. Pallid and panting from losing so much blood, Konan attempted to raise her head, and somehow managed to scrape her chin off the ground. She was well rewarded for this feeble effort, as a bright red and impossibly tattered cape spilled out around her and warded away the rain.

Konan had enough of her senses to cringe and shie away from the thick and musky scent of the ever billowing cloak, and the weeks of wear and tear that encompassed it.

Madara spun at the intruding voice, his eyes widening at the boy that was standing behind him.

His hair though mostly blond, fell into a ragged curtain that shaded his sapphire blye eyes. Those eyes regarded her curiously as though they were both surprised and saddened to see her in such a sad and sorry state. A series of tattoo and other marksings criscrossed his bruised temples that matched the seeping wound in his shoulder that was slung over his shoulder. A long staff hung from his left hip while his hands were lazily shoved through two of the many pockets in his hakama pants.

"I said," Naruto continued with a dark smirk. "What the fuck do you think you're doing...Madara?"

"Well now, this is interesting."

Somewhere above her, Madara tittered softly.

"So this is where you've been hiding."

Within that momentary lapse of combat, Konan glimpsed her caped saviour as, the cloak flared out before her face and around her body, sheltering her shivering frame from the rain.

Konan flinched away as the shadows unfurled, revealing Naruto's face to the world. At first glance, one might not notice any significant change, but for the fact that he had closed his eyes against the rain, and the sunlight. Why, one could only wonder, would anyone close their eyes when the enemy was right in front of them? In lieu of a reply to that silent inquiry, Naruto abruptly chose to open his eyes and Konana instantly found herself gasping.

"Impossible."

His eye.

His eyes!

Sapphire blue had given way to a dull silver grey and ripple-like pattern around the pupils, with a light purple iris and sclera. Twin orbs of murderous grey swiveled upon the congregation, holding both friend and foe in their power. Unnatural and terrifying in their magnificence, Konan uttered a small whimper of disbelief beneath this sight as he swiveled his eyes and saw her. Entrancing to the naked eye, she found herself staring helplessly ahead as those eyes lazily drifted across the clearing.

They found her gaze in an instant.

"Konan." She could somehow _see _Nagato standing next to him, a pale and translucent specter that hung over the blond and spoke in unison with him. Konan could feel his prescence, even though her mind told her that the redhead whom she had come to love so deeply and so tenderly now removed his hand from the boy's shoulder, and nodded but once, as Uzumaki Naruto turned to face her and lazily raised one hand to flick his thumb into the upward position.

"Those flowers," he offered weakly touching at what looked to be a paper carnation a this chest. "They just, well; I think I'll have to buy you some real ones, sometime, I guess." Konan did not so much as blink an eyelash at this, for she knew this voice. Just as she had know the youth that gripped But the image slipped away even as Konan reached for it amongst her memories. Rain slicked away off her visage and joined the sea in a flood of relieved tears as his grim visage broke into a smirk.

"Oh, and I'm really starting to re-think this whole world domination bid Yahiko had going for him."

"Oh," Konan whimpered as she fell to her knees, a bloodied hand grasping at the stone wall for support. "Oh my," she repeated, as though it would somehow wake her from this beautiful nightmare that refused to relinquish her mind. toddler. She could feel her eyes growing impossibly hot, like they were going to boil out of their sockets and run down her face in place of the tears that already were. She touched her clean hand to her lips, as if the small action could lessen the anguish that she was feeling in her chest.

And then another sound tore through the air, a deadly word that she was more than familiar with.

**"Rinnegan."**

Madara had found his voice, but all confidence and mockery had fallen away as he wheezed in sheer disbelief. Naruto shifted himself a centimeter or so to the right, his bare feet creating a series of small ripples upon the surface of the water. Incredibly, Madara flinched away from this minute movement, his lone eye widening in something akin to disbelief and dismay whilst the latter's twisted into twin slits of dignified disdain.

"That cannot— his words were interrupted at the sound of an explosion to his left. Madara snapped his head around in time to see a wall of fire consume the water, and the shadow of a massive sword swooping down upon them. At once, he dipped back and allowed Yachiru to slide soundlessly off his shoulders and onto the ground. His heel shot outward as she tumbled off his back, the wooden clog finding the shearing blade and holding firm as it ground to an abrupt halt.

Reeling as she was from the boy's sudden appearance, Konan uttered a small cry of disbelief as the voice confirmed the identity of their attacker.

"Never again," Naruto growled darkly, his visage hidden amongst the rain. "First Nagato now...no! I won't let you ruin another life ever again!" Still gripping the now furious _nukenin _by the forearm, the youth dragged his captive forward and viciously swatted the lead pipe out of his hand and into the water.

_"Rakanken Fist." _Naruto announced, taking a strange and languid stance that brought his chin low to the ground, and his arms swept back with fingers clenched into furious claws. Such was the name of his new and improved taijutsu style, his eyes hidden amidst dripping wet bangs as the deadly knee was forced into Madara's stomach and solidly connected. "_Shōshitsu."_

_"Rakanken-_

This time, Madara was able to phase away, to which his attacker hissed in irritation. Brief though it might have been, he did not brood over his inaccuracy as he flung his body and himself flat upon the lake, hands and feet stretched wide as the kunai sailed over his head. Refusing to waste a single movement, he swept around the moment the dagger had passed him by. Sweeping his body around in an impossible moevement, the blond all but vaulted over their heads and landed with no more than six inches to spare from Madara's now unprotected flank.

_"Hōshō." _He declared, striking swift and true as he thrust an empty palm into the chest of his target and produced a sickening gargle of blood_."__Shōgekishō." _Swiveling on his heel, the shinobi performed a wierd and wandering piourette back around and drove an upward thrust of his palm into Madara's solar plexus. "_Asshō." _Naruto lashed out with either palm, striking Madara across both the left and the right cheek, followed by the neck with a sharp and violent downward thrust of the palm.

_"Gangeki!" _Extracting a fair amoount of light and lightning from the air, he molded them together with the winds.

"_Tokken._" Madara sagged forward another half step when the intruder rammed an armored shoulder into his spine and immediately continued the combination with another of his strangely named but incredibly accurate body blows. " An incredible force tossed Konan aside, the figure popped out of existence, only to reappear in a blur beside the masked shinobi, whose astonished gaze met that of an another's, and then moved down to observe the orb of sapphire held in his palm; just before the youth pressed it into the small of his back and released his hold.

_"Rasengan!"_

Stunned and bearing a gaping tear in his cloak, Madara flew back and crashed into one of far away towers in the distance, before falling into the frigid embrace of the frigd waters below. Slapping each palm upon the frothing sea, the blond was swift to correct his balance and skip backwards amongst the waves, frantically scanning the stormy horizon for any sign of his attacker. The assailant was nowhere to be seen, and the scent of burning paper reached his nose.

_'When did- _

He had just begun to phase into safety, when the paper tag exploded against his back. Stunned, Madara lurched out of the black smoke, hacking and coughing terribly as he lowered a now sleeveless arm from a badly cracked mask and launched himself upright and into the stormy skies above. He'd gained only a few miles of distance when a resolidified body into an awaiting fist. Oddly enough, the force benhind this blow was quite weak, and nowhere near enough to move him, the shinigami began to laugh quietly. Madara felt an uncomfortable sensation over the flesh of his right pectoral just underneath his torn surcoat. The tip of the sleek black kunai was pressed against his chest, though it trembled with the assasin's effort to keep it placed there.

_"Katon: Hōsenka no Jutsu."_

Madara lurched back and away from the flurry of flames that met him as he reappeared an inch or so behind Konan. But his attacker was agile, and several of those wild and erratic flaming bolts did find their mark as a firm and experienced hit was administed to his cheek, shattering a sizeable portion of his mask. Whoever they werre, they wasted not a moment, uncaring as muscles began to tear, unflinching as he launched the elder Uchiha into the rubble with a solid sweep to his legs.

Seizing the opportunity, the figure surged forward whilst its master dragged Madara into the damp soil.

_'Blast this rain, I can't see his hands.'_ Madara lurched back as his unknown adversary placed two hands together and formed a seal. _'What kind of seals are those...and where did that sword come from?'_

Placing a thin katana's hilt between his teeth, the blond raised his right hand, and thrust forward with the left, his fingers curling into claws as they formed an elaborate series of symbols. Right hand facing down above left, left hand facing up below right; Each hand's index and middle fingers folded, and ring and little fingers straightened. Parting, they held a small sphere of liquid moisture from within the protective cradle of his palms.

_"Suiton: Suishōha." _**(Water Shockwave)**

Konan had only an instant to blink, her eyes widening and Madara's grin wavering as Naruto thrust the swollen sphere to the earth and created a torrential rush of water. In the mountainous climate, the water instantly froze, but that too, seemed to be part of the plan, as Naruto formed another set of seals and bid the ice to take the shape of a massive dragon. Arching back, it swept past her in a violent rush of wind and snow and crashed headfirst into the flames of Amaterasu.

The mighty entity struck, smashing them both across the body with the flat of its jaws. Itachi flew back, willing his faltering legs to break out into a run as he swept the Amateratsu blade down with a vicious and keening hiss of displeasure. Madara let out a small grunt as he blocked the blade with the pipe, only to forcefully discard it as the flames lashed out at his arm and found a piece of his mask

_'Shit!'_ He lurched back as his unknown adversary placed two hands together and formed yet another seal. _'What kind of seals are those..._

"Oiroke no Jutsu!"

_'Eh?'_

There was suddenly a great cloud of smoke, that didn't dissipate.

_'What devilry be this?'_

The smoke began to clear away...to reveal a very attractive and very _naked _blonde girl, who seductively blew a kiss at Madara. Petrified by the sight that lay before him, Uchiha Madara knew not what to think when faced with such an unusual adversary or..or...

**"!"**

"Gah!" he cried, a jet of blood squirting somehow squirting out of his mask as he tumbled back into the pond and lost his balance, blood dripping from his nose, as he flew backwards into his own desk, crashing there with and explosive thud.

The girl laughed before she poofed away, to reveal a smiling Naruto.

"Sucker!" The kage bunshin cackled, scooping Konan up into his arms. "Be seeing you!

And with a mighy _whoosh_ of smoke, they vanished into the storm.

**A/N: Yes, this is fannish much! But hey, c'mon, its a good fandom, right? And Yes, Naruto had the Rinnegan transplanted, hence the reason for his sudden, but terrific badassness. More will be revealed in the next chappy; i.e. reasoning being why he left the leaf (or not) and accompanied Konan back to Amegakure like a good boy. XD**


End file.
